20．Destiny and Personal Responsibility
One important variable affecting communication across cultures is destiny（命運）and personal responsibility．This refers to the degree to which we feel ourselves the masters of our lives，contrary to the degree to which we see ourselves as subject to things outside our control．Another way to look at this is to ask how much we see ourselves able to change and act，to choose the course of our lives and relationships．Some have drawn a parallel between the personal responsibility in North American settings and the view itself．The North American view is vast，with large spaces of unpopulated land．The frontier attitude of"King"of the wilderness，and the expansiveness of the land reaching huge distances，may relate to generally high levels of confidence in the ability to shape and choose our destinies．
In this expansive land，many children grow up with a heroic sense of life，where ideas are big，and hope springs forever．When they experience temporary failures，they encouraged to redouble their efforts，to"try，try again．"Action，efficiency（效率），and achievement are valued and expected．Free will is respected in laws and enforced by courts．
Now consider places in the world with much smaller land，whose history reflects wars and tough struggles：Northern Ireland，Mexico，Israel，Palestine．In these places，destiny's role is more important in human life．In Mexico，there is a history of hard life，fighting over land，and loss of homes．Mexicans are more likely to see struggles as part of their life and unavoidable．Their passive attitude is expr4essed in their way of responding to failure or accident by saying"ni modo"（"no way"or"tough lick"），meaning that the failure was destined．
This variable is important to understanding cultural conflict．If someone believing in free will crosses paths with someone more passive，miscommunication is likely．The first person may expect action and accountability．Failing to see it，he may conclude that the second is lazy，not cooperative，or dishonest．The second person will expect respect for the natural order of thins．Failing to see it，he may conclude that the first is forcible，rude，or big headed in his ideas of what can be accomplished or changed．
67．The author thinks that one's character is partly determined byD．
A．physical senses B．general attitude
C．financial background D．geographic characteristics
68．According to the passage，Mexicans would think that Americans areA．
A．impractical B．dishonest C．a(chǎn)mbitious D．hesitant
69．The underlined word"subject"in Paragraph 1probably meansD．
A．a(chǎn) topic of a discussion
B．a(chǎn) branch of knowledge
C．a(chǎn) person being experimented on
D．a(chǎn) person under the power of others
70．The author would probably agree thatC．
A．vast land may lead to a more controllable desire
B．heroic sense of life roots deeply in a small country
C．living in limited space contributes to an accepting attitude
D．fighting over land may help people gain high levels of confidence．
分析 本文屬于說明文閱讀，作者通過這篇文章主要向我們描述了命運與個人責任的關系，成長的地域不同是造就不同性格的原因之一，生活在廣闊地域的人普遍比較自信，相信自己會成功，而在戰(zhàn)亂狹小地域的人甚至覺得失敗是必然的，這是很重要的文化沖突．
解答 67．D．推理判斷題．根據(jù)文章第二段"In this expansive land，many children grow up with a heroic sense of life"可知作者認為人的性格形成的一部分原因是地理特征；故選D．
68．A．推理判斷題．根據(jù)文章第三段"Their passive attitude is expr4essed in their way of responding to failure or accident by saying"ni modo"（"no way"or"tough lick"），meaning that the failure was destined"可知墨西哥人認為失敗是注定的，而美國人相信不停嘗試一定會成功；因此可知墨西哥人會覺得美國人是不切實際的；故選A．
69．D．詞義推斷題．根據(jù)文章第一段"This refers to the degree to which we feel ourselves the masters of our lives，contrary to the degree to which we see ourselves as subject to things outside our control"可知subject與masters of our lives生活的主人意思相反，因此意為在別人壓迫下的人；故選D．
70．C．細節(jié)理解題．根據(jù)文章第二段"Now consider places in the world with much smaller land，whose history reflects wars and tough struggles"可知生活在受限的小空間的人更服從命運，即他們更易擁有懂得接受命運的態(tài)度；故選C．
點評 考察學生的細節(jié)理解和推理判斷能力，做細節(jié)理解題時一定要找到文章中的原句，和題干進行比較，再做出正確的選擇．在做推理判斷題不要以個人的主觀想象代替文章的事實，要根據(jù)文章事實進行合乎邏輯的推理判斷．
